Tag Archives: Taylor

Multi Spec Open Wheel – Cooper T71/73 #F1-3-64

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When Bob Gerard hung up his helmet and gloves to become an entrant he continued to buy Cooper cars and enter them in a variety of specifications as he had done with his 1953 Cooper Bristol #CB-4-53.

In 1964 Bob had today’s featured Cooper T71 to all intents and purposes a 1 litre Formula Two car built up to 1.5 litre Formula One spec fitted with a twin cam 1.5 litre Holbay motor, the similar works Cooper T73 Formula One cars differed only in that they were fitted with 1.5 litre 91.5 cui Coventry Climax motors that produced 50hp more than the Ford production block based Holbay.

Cooper T71/73, Alan Baillie, Silverstone Classic

Bob entered #F1/3/64 for John Taylor in Formula Libre and non championship Formula One events in 1964 before giving John his Championship Formula One debut at the 1964 British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch.

John qualified 22nd and after gearbox repairs in the pits was running 14th, 24 laps down on winner Jim Clark when the flag fell in what turned out to be this cars only championship Formula One appearance.

Cooper T71/73, Alan Baillie, Silverstone Classic

Subsequently Bob continued to enter this car in Formula One spec for John and Alan Rollinson before running it with a 1 litre / 61 cui Formula Two motor for a couple of events in September 1964.

In 1965 John Rhodes drove the car with the Holbay motor and on other occasions Gerard Racings two mechanics were kept busy installing a Formula Two and a 1650 cc / 100 cui Formula Libre spec motor for John Taylor to drive.

1965 also saw Bob’s son Julian Gerard race this car with a stock 1 litre / 61 cui Formula Three spec Ford motor fitted.

In 1966 Bob entered the car in Formula Two spec in one event for Chris Lambert before turning it over to Formula Libre spec for his son Julian for the 1967 season.

At the end of 1967 Californian Bob Wenz bought #F1/3/64 and raced it for several seasons in SCCA Formula B events.

#F1/3/64 is seen in these photographs with current owner Alan Baillie at the wheel at last years Silvertone Classic.

Thanks for joining me on this “Multi Spec Open Wheel” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Lost Luck Of The Irish – Wyedean Forest Rally

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Following last weeks blog on the 40th Weir Engineering Wyedean Forest Rally today’s blog features the remaining prize winners on the event who did not get a mention.

Peugeot 106, Matthew Davis, Ryan Taylor, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally

The Rex Paddock Memorial Trophy for the best prepared car entered by a Forest of Dean Motor Club member went to the 1400 C class #251 Peugeot 106 that Matthew Davis and Ryan Taylor drove to a 91st place overall finish.

Subaru Impreza, Nigel Drew, Pauline Nash, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally

The Lionel Ward Trophy for best finish by a Forest of Dean Motor Club Crew was awarded to Nigel Drew and Pauline Nash who drove their #29 Subaru Impreza to a 22nd place finish overall.

Nissan Micra, Nigel Jenkins, Kirsty Walby, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally,

Nigel Jenkins and Kirsty Walby driving the RF1.4 #239 Nissan Micra won the Finishing Touches Hair and Beauty Cup for finishing 98th overall and last of the Forest of Dean Motor Club entered crews.

Peugeot 106 Rallye 2, Rachel Patterson, Tom Wood, Blaze Bailey, Wyedean Forest Rally,

The Bob Brain Trophy for highest placed lady driver was won by Rachel Patterson who along with co driver Tom Wood brought their 1400C class #246 Peugeot 106 Rallye 2 home in 105th place overall.

Subaru Impreza WRC, David Weston, Kirsty Riddick, Blaze Bailey, Wyedean Forest Rally

Kirsty Riddick who navigated David Weston’s #2 Subaru Impreza WRC to a second place finish overall won the Lilian Turley Trophy for best placed lady co-driver.

Ford Focus WRC 05, Damian Cole, Jack Moreton, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally

Jack Moreton navigated Damian Cole’s #6 Ford Focus WRC 05 to a 6th place finish and earned himself the Michael ‘Beef’ Park Trophy for highest placed under 22 co-driver.

Mitsubishi EVO X, Gunnar Karl Johannesson, George Gwynn, Blaze Bailey, Wyedean Forest Rally

The Forest of Green District Youth Cup for the highest placed under 22 driver was won by Gunnar Karl Johannesson who with George Gwynn finished 29th overall in their class N4 #51 Mitsubishi Evo X.

Land Rover Freelander M Sport, Spence Price, Chris Hands, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally

There was only one off road vehicle in the event namely the #105 Land Rover Freelander M Sport driven by Spence Price and Chris Hands to a 96th place finish overall and the B G Landrovers Ross on Wye Trophy for highest place off road 4×4.

Citroën C2 VTR, Dan Moss, Sam Allen, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally,

The Gwynne Speed Rally Championship honours for best Citroën C2 finishers went to the #110 Citroën C2 VTR crew of Dan Moss and Sam Allen who finished 94th overall.

Lancia Stratos, Steve Perez, Paul Spooner, Blaze Bailey, Wyedean Forest Rally,

I’ll add a couple Psychoontyres awards of my own first for best sounding car to make it past the last corner on the opening Blaze Bailey Stage was the Ferrari Dino V6 powered #44 Lancia Stratos crewed by Steve Perez and Paul Spooner, which unfortunately retired with suspension problems after finishing stage 2.

Volkswagen Lupo Sport, Danny O'Reilly, Karen Phelps, Mailscot, Wyedean Forest Rally,

Finally the Psychoontyres best sense of Humour award goes to the #264 Volkswagen Lupo Sport crew of Danny O’Reilly and Karen Phelps who posted their retirement as “Lost luck of the Irish after SS6”.

Thanks for joining me on this “Lost Luck Of the Irish” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a 1969 NASCAR contender. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Merry Christmas – 1937 Dodge Fire Engine

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About five or six years ago it was a great privilege to become acquainted with a NASCAR fan and Marblehead Kim Tucker who’s partner Tommie is a fireman. It is a great thrill and honour that the photo’s for today’s Christmas blog come from Kim.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

In 1937 the State of California Department Of Forestry (CDF), today known as Cal-Fire purchased today’s featured Dodge fire engine, it was delivered new to CDF/Tulare County Station 10, located in Farmersville, California.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

It was later replaced by a modern engine and sold to a church group for their camp in the local Sierra Nevada mountains.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

When the Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company heard that the Dodge was no longer being used by the church camp, they made arrangements to trade their 1953 fire engine for the 1937 Dodge to use in muster competitions.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

The by now rotten tyres and hose were replaced, the motor rebuilt, and the Dodge was given a fresh paint job; other than that, there has been no restoration.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

The 1937 Dodge’s water pump can pump water at the same rate as the pump on the 2014 Dodge Patrol unit that Farmersville Fire Department, now known as Station 83, put into service within the last few months.

1937 Dodge Fire Truck, Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, California,

The Farmersville Volunteer Fire Company, which is not part of the city government, but was set up to help support Farmersville, use their 1937 Dodge for parades, such as the Farmersville Memorial Day Parade and to transport Santa Claus to the annual Christmas Tree lighting, where the children of the town can see Santa and be given a small gift bag donated by local organizations.

My thanks to Kim Tucker for sharing her photographs and to Pat Taylor, the chap with the big grin driving the Dodge, for sharing his information about the fire engine.

Thanks for joining me on this “Merry Christmas” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow for Ferrari Friday. Don’t for get to come back now !

Wishing all Psycho On Tyres readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

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Wider Longer Lower – Chevron B28 #B28-74-01

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Like Lola’s Eric Broadley a year earlier, Chevron Cars founder Derek Bennett decided that the way to go with the Chevron B28 1974 Formula 5000 challenger was wider, longer and lower.

Chevron B28, Simon Taylor, Silverstone Classic

Unlike Eric, Derek did not have such a good time convincing his customers that the B28 was a step forward they should invest in, with the VDS team being the only takers of two new B28’s, despite the fact that the previous years Chevron B24 had been successful winning the British F5000 title with Teddy Pelitte at the wheel and the Tasman F5000 series with Peter Gethin at the wheel, while Lola cars had not won any F5000 championships since 1971 !

Chevron B28, Simon Taylor, Silverstone Classic

With works support and Swiss Morand tuned fuel injected Chevrolet motors the VDS teams B28’s with reigning champion Teddy Pelitte and newly crowned Tasman Champion Peter Gethin raced exclusively in the 18 round Rothmans sponsored European F5000 championship.

Chevron B28, Simon Taylor, Silverstone Classic

By the season’s end Peter Gethin’s four victories were only good enough to secure 2nd place in the championship to Bob Evans driving an almost ubiquitous Lola T332 model while poor Teddy Pelitte driving what is believed to be today’s featured chassis only completed 7 laps of the opening two races before his season started getting any momentum.

Teddy managed several second place finishes, to Peter at Monza and wound up a distant fourth in the final championship standings. Interestingly the last race of the European Championship season was won by Vern Schuppan driving a Chevron B24 with the B28 suspension modifications.

Today’s featured chassis #B28-74-01 appears to have remained in the UK, with Tony Dean driving the car with Rockerfella’s, discotheque, sponsorship for most of the 1975 season before entering it for Brazilian Ingo Hoffman for the last four races of the season while he sorted out some problems with Her Majesties government regarding the import of cigars from the USA, said to have been smuggled in to the UK inside a spare car called the KEC Special, KEC denoting King Edward Cigar.

In 2012 present owner Simon Taylor, seen driving the car at Silverstone in these photo’s, had #B28-74-01 painted in the blue Thursday’s, discotheque, livery that was seen on the sister chassis #B28-74-02 in 1975 when it was driven by Australian F1 refugee Dave Walker for RAM racing.

Thanks for joining me on this “Wider Longer Lower” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for Maserati Monday tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Pinacle Of 500cc F3 Design – Staride Mk 3

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Mike Erskine Speedway rider who owned a factory that manufactured motor vehicle radiators who also built Staride frames for Speedway motorcycle racing in Southampton.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Gurston Down.

At the end of 1951 he quit Speedway and started building a prototype 500cc Formula 3 car to a design, an evolution of a Kieft design, by former Kieft designer Dean Delamont and Cecil Mitchell for John Hambin.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Gurston Down.

On it’s debut at Goodwood in April 1952 John finished 4th. A production protoype Staride also appeared in 1952.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Gurston Down.

For 1953 a production run was started and Reg Bicknell who had successfully built and raced the Revis was one of the works supported drivers.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Gurston Down.

Reg was a regular top three finisher in International Formula 3 events through 1953 as was Dennis Taylor in 1954.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Oulton Park.

It is believed 10 Starides, weighing 500lbs, were built and they were offered for sale at £550 less engine and gearbox.

Staride Mk3, Xavier Kingsland, Oulton Park.

Today’s featured 1953 Staride Mk3 is seen at Gurston Down and Oulton Park last year with Xavier Kingland at the wheel.

Anyone within traveling distance of Castle Combe will have the opportunity to see 500cc Formula 3 cars, like the Staride and Revis I looked at last week, tomorrow where they will be racing for the Bristol Aeroplane Company Motor Sports Club Challenge Trophy along with seven more races and a plethora of classic car demonstrations and static displays.

Thanks for joining me on this “Pinacle Of 500cc F3 Design” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I be starting an 80th Anniversary Celebration of English Racing Automobiles (ERA). Don’t forget to come back now.

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Going It Alone Again – Trojan Chevrolet T101 #T101-102

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This month’s Saturday posts will feature 4 Formula 5000 cars built for the 1973 season. Formula 5000 was an open wheel Formula for vehicles fitted with stock block motor up to 5 litres / 302 cui which ran from 1967 in the USA 1969 in Europe and 1970 in the Antipodes coming to a stop in 1975 in the Antipodes and 1976 in the US and Europe.

With the fall in competitiveness of the McLaren Can Am and Formula 5000 programmes, in 1972, McLaren Cars focused it’s attention on it’s Formula One and USAC Champ car programmes with the McLaren M23 and McLaren M16 respectively.

Trojan Chevrolet T101, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

This left Trojan in a difficult spot since their business had been increasingly built on manufacturing McLaren Can Am and Formula 5000 open wheel cars under licence since the demise of their own Elva branded operations in 1964.

Trojan Chevrolet T101, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

A compromise to keep Trojan going was reached which saw Trojan fuse an open wheel Formula 2 McLaren M21 chassis with a strengthened rear bulkhead to the rear end from the 1972 McLaren M18/M22 Formula 5000 car with a ubiquitous Chevrolet small block for power. McLaren Cars would not countenance the use of their name with the new car so it was called the Trojan T101. Former Brabham designer Ron Tauranac was brought in to help develop the model once it was built.

Trojan Chevrolet T101, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

In all six T101’s were built and of the first five built for the 1973 season, the first four were driven to race victories in the UK and USA by the likes of Keith Holland, Brett Lunger, Jody Scheckter and Bob Evans. Scheckter won four races in the USA on his way to becoming L&M Champion in the SCCA Series.

Trojan Chevrolet T101, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

Today’s featured car #T101-102 was sold new to Sid Taylor, for Brett Lunger, Brett won on his debut in the car at Snetterton and set an all time 124 mph outright lap record, on the old long circuit in the 4th round of the Rothmans European Formula 5000 championship. Brett also won the 10th round at Mallory Park. Vern Schuppan raced #T101-102 in the opening four races of 1974 and thereafter it was driven by a variety of drivers of increasing obscurity in events of equally increasing obscurity in to the 1980’s which included, Leen Verhoeven, Damien Magee, Jim Kelly, Robin Hamilton, Jon Bradburn and Anthony Taylor in 1982.

Trojan Chevrolet T101, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

Simon Hadfield acquired the remains of #T101-102 in 2006 and has restored it, as seen here at last years Race Retro, with the livery and #11 originally seen on Alan McKechnie’s T101-104 raced by Bob Evans to victory at the second Snetterton round of the 1973 Rothmans European Formula 5000 championship.

Thanks for joining me on this “Going It Alone Again” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now.

18/12/13 My original post inadvertently incorrectly implied that Trojan #T101-102 was jointly entered by Sid Taylor and Jerry Entin for Brett Lunger, in fact Brett’s car was solely entered by Sid Taylor, however Sid and Jerry did jointly enter the Trojan #T101-103 driven by Jody Scheckter in the 1973 L&M Series. Apologies for any confusion.

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The Ambassador’s Embassy – Shadow Cosworth DN1 #DN1-3A

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Ten years after winning his first World Championship driving for BRM, in 1963, and five years after winning his second World Championship driving for Lotus, in 1968 (Norman) Graham Hill had become the senior citizen of the sport with wins at Indianapolis in 1966 and at Le Mans in 1972 to make a unique triple crown of victories which only he has achieved, making him arguably the most versatile driver in the history of the sport. Graham was also the first man to win the Monaco Grand Prix five times a record that was not equaled until 1992 and beaten until 1993 when Ayrton Senna won his fifth and sixth Monaco Grand Prix victories.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

As the wise cracking head of Embassy, UK brand cigarettes, quipped in 1973 at the launch of Graham Hills Embassy sponsored Formula One Team every ambassador needs an Embassy. Graham’s was built by, the then relatively unknown in Europe, Shadow a team that had cut it’s teeth in Can Am primarily with Graham Hill’s former Lotus Team mate Jackie Oliver.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

The Shadow DN1 was designed by Tony Southgate who’s CV includes designing the last two BRM’s to win major races the P160, an example of which Jackie Oliver had driven in 1972, and P180 which bears a familial resemblance to today’s featured DN1 apart from the fact that the latter is powered by a by 1973 ubiquitous Ford sponsored Cosworth V8 which Graham Hill had been instrumental in testing back in 1967.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

Under the umbrella of Mr Shadow, Don Nichols, sponsored by UOP Lead Free fuel the Shadow team ran two black works cars for Jackie Oliver and 1972 Can Am Champion George Follmer and sold a third car #DN1-3A to Graham Hill for him to run as a privateer. Not for the first, or the last, time none of the Shadow cars were ready for the start of the season the works team missed two races before making their debut in South Africa where George starting 21st came through to finish 6th and score a single world championship point on his Grand Prix debut.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

Graham’s car was ready at the next race the Spanish Grand Prix where Graham qualified 22nd but failed to finish after experiencing problems with his brakes, while George Follmer came through to a seasons equal best 3rd place finish in his second championship Grand Prix. At the Belgian Grand Prix Graham qualified 23rd and came through to finish ninth which would prove to be his best result in an otherwise totally frustrating year for his fledgling Embassy Racing Team.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

The works UOP Shadow teams debut season was similarly also fraught with disappointment until the Canadian Grand Prix where Jackie Oliver scored his a career equaling best third place finish, five years after he had finished 3rd in the 1968 Mexican Grand Prix. For the 1974 season Graham Hill took his Embassy sponsorship to Lola while Jackie Oliver and George Follmer returned to the Can Am series where they finished 1st and 2nd respectively when the series finally stopped one race short of the scheduled season.

Shadow Cosworth DN1, Silverstone Classic

Jackie Oliver became increasingly involved in the management of the Shadow team while keeping his hand in driving the mighty Dodge powered Shadow DN6 Formula 5000 cars and put in a one off final Formula One appearance at the 1977 Swedish GP where he finished 9th.

Daryl Taylor is seen at the wheel of #DN1-3A at recent Silverstone Classic events.

Thanks for joining me on this “The Ambassador’s Embassy” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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